India grapples with how to clean delicate Taj Mahal dome

Authorities in India are trying to work out how to scale the Taj Mahal’s majestic but delicate dome as they complete the first thorough cleaning of the World Heritage Site since it was built 369 years ago.

Work on the mausoleum’s minarets and walls is almost finished after workers began the makeover in mid-2015.

They have been using a natural mud paste to remove yellow discolouration and return the marble to its original brilliant white.

Called fuller’s earth, it is the same clay that some people smother on their skin as a beauty treatment.

But the metal scaffolding used so far is too heavy and rigid for the dome, said Bhuvan Vikrama, the superintending archaeologist from the Archaeological Survey of India.

He said they are considering other options, including designing and constructing special bamboo scaffolding.

Mr Vikrama said there is a precedent as bamboo scaffolding was used on the dome in the early 1940s when some conservation work was carried out.

He said rain was enough to clean most of the Taj Mahal in the past but air pollution over the last 25 years had taken its toll.